A file image of former Indian captain Kapil Dev.
Former Indian cricketer and the nation's 1983 World Cup-winning captain, Kapil Dev, on Friday was admitted to a Delhi hospital after complaint of chest pain. He underwent angioplasty treatment late after midnight on October 23, following which he is currently stable.
According to a statement from Delhi's Fortis Escorts Heart Institute, Kapil Dev is currently in ICU and is expected to be "discharged in a couple of days."
"Former Indian Cricket captain Mr. Kapil Dev , Age 62 years, came to Fortis Escorts Heart Institute (Okhla Road) emergency department at 1:00 am on 23rd October with a complaint of chest pain," the statement read.
"He was evaluated and an emergency coronary Angioplasty was performed by Dr. Atul Mathur, Director of Cardiology Department, in the middle of night. Currently, he is admitted in ICU and under close supervision of Dr. Atul Mathur and his team. Mr. Kapil Dev is stable now and he is expected to get discharged in couple of days."
Indian Cricketers Association (ICA) President Ashok Malhotra told PTI that Kapil was feeling unwell on Thursday following which he was taken to the hospital.
"He is feeling okay now. I just spoke to his wife (Romi). He was feeling uneasy yesterday. He is undergoing check-ups at a hospital as we speak," Malhotra, also a former Test player, said.
Current Indian captain Virat Kohli, who is playing in the ongoing Indian Premier League 2020 in the UAE, wished Kapil Dev a speedy recovery.
Meanwhile, Indian batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar also took to Twitter to pray for Kapil Dev's swift recovery.
Kapil, who made his international debut in 1978, has played 131 Tests for India, scoring 5258 runs with eight centuries and took 434 wickets with 23 five-wicket hauls and two ten-fers. The former all-rounder remains the only cricketer in world cricket to have achieved the Test double of 5000 runs and 400 wickets. He also featured in 225 ODI matches, scoring 3783 runs with 15 half-century-plus scores and took 253 wickets at an average of 27.45.
He replaced Sunil Gavaskar as India's captain during the 1982/83 season and was named as the skipper for the 1983 World Cup which was held in England, leading to team to their maiden international glory, beating the mighty West Indies side in a low-scoring summit clash at the iconic Lord's.
He retired from cricket in 1994. He was the leading wicket-taker in Test cricket at that time while also being India's leading wicket-taker in both the formats then.
He also coached the Indian team for a brief period between 1999 and 2000, and also served as the chairman of National Cricket Academy between 2006 and 2008. In 2010, he was inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame.
